Strategically creative to launch and grow your business.

Portfolio includes

Profile

Creative Director specializing in Brand Cultivation.

From launching international fashion brands to running creative departments at digital ad agencies, I have the experience to make a brand flourish both offline and online. My work is smart, inspired, and prescient, elegantly translating a brand’s message and personality to every communication touchpoint.

With a background in store design and graphic design—and extensive experience in both digital and traditional media—I have served as Creative Director with Lowe & Partners and JWT. I am currently Creative Director and Principal of Motherhaus, a design and communications consultancy which I founded 20 years ago to focus on cultivating brands, particularly for startups and small- to mid-size businesses. I have to wear many hats—art direction, web development, print production, copy editing, project management, client management, freelancer management, operations—and have a deep understanding of all aspects of running a business. Given the nature of startups and small businesses, I know how to communicate creative and technical thinking to clients who are not particularly design- or tech-oriented.

When it comes to the work, I love the challenge of achieving harmonious and consistent brand messaging across all touchpoints and am passionate about adhering to the marketing strategy and getting all the details just right. I place great importance on team building and on nurturing creative talent: while at Lowe, for instance, I built a new creative department from scratch and created such a strong team that most of us are still close friends and collaborators 15 years later.

Experience

MotherhausNew York. 1995-present. Principal/Creative Director.

Strategic: I guide businesses through transitions, helping them adapt to an ever-changing world by refreshing their brands, improving their communications, and enhancing public perceptions. I also align the internal operations of companies, integrating CRM, email marketing, scheduling, social media, e-commerce and local marketing to be intuitive, time-saving, and on brand.

Creative: I direct and produce smart, inspired programs that anticipate the future needs of clients, such as branding applications across product categories and scalability over diverse media. For most assignments, I assemble and lead specialized project teams but I also work individually as a creative consultant. Side ventures include facilitating Motherhaus Kollektiv workshops for artists looking for inspiration and motivation.

JWT INSIDENew York. 2008-2010. Creative Director.
Co-managed the New York hub office and directed all creative development pertaining to employer branding, internal communications, and talent acquisition for a roster of global and Fortune 100 companies. Crafted award-winning campaigns and websites that resonated with the perfect candidates by reflecting the inner truth of each client’s business. Annual billings: $6 million. JWT INSIDE is a specialty division of JWT.

Lowe InteractiveNew York. 1999-2001. SVP/Creative Director.
As the first creative hire for the new interactive division of Lowe & Partners, established a vibrant creative department from the ground up, personally selecting all designers, copywriters and developers. Built award-winning sites and campaigns for global clients new to online marketing. Annual billings: $16.8 million.

Testimonials

Kevin is a consummate professional and a delightfully refreshing and creative human being. Although I have worked with Kevin for many years, I find myself constantly reminded of what a unique and valuable talent he is. His ideas are magnetic, layered, and always built with the capacity to play well across media. His approach to brand building, while guided by stepwise German logic on the inside, can only be described as fluid on the outside. I believe Kevin has uncovered the secret to successful brand cultivation. He doesn’t just ensure each touch point feels fresh. He pays special attention to space in between—the transition. The brand personality that fills the space between communications is where the brand actually lives and breaths. That’s his magic.

Jill Kaeser / VP Creative Director at 2nd Spark Consulting

Kevin is a creative force with a mind for strategic thinking. I have worked with Kevin on large, evolving branding initiatives and small quick turn around projects. He is a consummate professional whom I know I can depend on for thoughtful creative and there when I need him. To say Kevin is thorough would be an understatement. The quality of work he delivers on a daily basis is near perfection. My team and my clients are in good hands when Kevin is involved. As anyone in this business knows, it is difficult to find a creative spirit who possesses the versatility and depth of knowledge necessary to deliver truly unique ideas across industry verticals. From beverages to consumer package goods to highly technical medical devices, I have seen him do it all and it looks good!

Kerry Lowe / Consultant at 2nd Spark Consulting

I’ve had the professional and personal privilege to work with Kevin for the past 5 years. He’s my go-to Creative Director for ideas and solutions. Kevin has supported me on a variety of assignments, ranging from internal marketing campaigns to videos, web-based initiatives, presentation design and much more. Kevin is a consummate professional. His easygoing and thoughtful manner combined with his creative and strategic thinking are great strengths. He always delivers his projects on-time and on-budget. And best of all he’s upbeat and fun!

Jeanne Reilly / Multimedia Producer, Kraft Foods

I have worked with Kevin for many years, both as a client and a partner, and have experienced "client-facing Kevin" as well as "behind-the-scenes" Kevin. His honesty, integrity and commitment to the best, most strategic creative work is rare and refreshing in both relationships. What does this mean to working with Kevin? Thoughtfulness. Forthrightness. Timelines met. Humour. Passion for integrating creative, brand, strategy, business. Attention to detail. Ability to work well across categories and disciplines. Thoughtful, considered, constructive point-of-view. Clean icons. Functioning sites. Smart design. Great work.

Simon Campbell / Vice President, Global Creative and Brand Director

Kevin exceeded our expectations from start to finish of the process of designing our company logo. Kevin had a way of finding out the details about our brand and he managed to incorporate the results of his research in his logo design. Highly recommend.

Chef Fed / Michelin-star private NYC chef and cooking class tutor

Kevin and I worked on some interactive projects together. I found him to be talented, insightful and professional in every aspect of our work together. He handled unexpected requirements and issues easily and ensured that the results would meet requirements and adapt to changing technical challenges. Additionally to providing Creative, Kevin became a de facto project manager and handled the challenges with ease.

Peter Campbell / President, m3

Kevin is a true professional and his input and creativity was invaluable. A great job and I’d totally recommend Kevin.
Site: <a title="John Glatt Website" href="http://www.johnglatt.com" target="_blank">www.johnglatt.com</a>

John Glatt / Author, Freelance Writing and Editing Consultant

In this industry, it is hard to meet a person like Kevin, who is not only talented but also incredibly kind and caring. Kevin is one of the most impressive supervisors I have met and I am so thankful I had an opportunity to work with him.

SoJung Lee, / Digital Consultant, reported to Kevin at JWT INSIDE

Kevin is an incredibly talented graphic designer that knows how to take concept and personality and create websites, cards, menus, etc. that reflect the uniqueness of the services offered. He’s done many projects for me, all of which have been effective, beautiful and reflective of who I am in a way I had not thought possible. Whether he’s editing and helping me write copy, choose colors, font..etc. or expanding my website, he always hits the mark exactly. I’ve recommended him to several friends and they all have the same experience! He’s also very easy to work with and delivers on time with an extreme awareness to budget limits and is incredibly resourceful.. a delight to work with! Top qualities: Great Results, High Integrity, Creativity.

Soli Davis / Owner, Shibumi Sp

Never had the pleasure of working with someone as inspiring as Kevin. I have learned so many valuable lessons from our collaborations—principles I continue to apply in my work today.

Kevin is a dream to work with…his creative sensibility is unique and unmatched; and, he takes the time to understand the strategic implications of his proposed creative solutions, in terms of the human results, as well as making a positive impact on people’s lives. A difficult balance to achieve, but Kevin manages to do so seamlessly.

Kevin is incredibly detail-oriented and patient. In addition to being visually stunning, his creative is smart, thought-provoking and strategically on-target. Kevin is very easy to work with and for and is well-respected. He is an exceptional Creative Director in a sea of mediocrity.